1.1 - Character Origin Procedure

Character Origin Procedure

Step 1: Choose an Ancestry

Your ancestry provides creature type, size, Speed, senses, and a small set of inherited traits. An ancestry does not determine personality, alignment, profession, language, or ability-score increases.

Step 2: Choose a Heritage

Choose one heritage listed in your ancestry. A heritage represents a physical, magical, or inherited expression of that ancestry.

Instead of a normal heritage, you may choose Aasimar, Tiefling, or Mixed Heritage from the Versatile Heritages chapter. You retain your base ancestry and replace only its heritage.

Step 3: Choose an Ancestry Knack

Choose one Ancestry Knack from your base ancestry. A knack is a small form of inherited awareness, habit, or physical expression. It is intentionally narrower than a skill proficiency and does not grant blanket advantage on checks.

Step 4: Choose a Culture

Culture represents learned customs and community knowledge. Any ancestry may belong to any culture when the character's history supports it. Culture grants a language and a narrative Cultural Practice; it never grants an ability-score increase.

Step 5: Choose a Background

Background represents prior work and life experience. Choose it using the campaign's normal D&D 5e background rules. V4.0 does not add another set of ability-score increases, proficiencies, equipment, feats, or background features.

The Using D&D Backgrounds chapter explains 2014-style, 2024-style, and existing Hiraeth backgrounds.

Step 6: Choose a Level-1 Ancestry Talent

Choose one level-1 talent from your base ancestry, your versatile heritage if you have one, or the Universal Ancestry Talents chapter.

You gain another ancestry talent at levels 5, 9, 13, and 17. You must meet its level requirement and cannot choose the same talent twice unless it says otherwise.

Step 7: Choose an Optional Complication

Complications replace mandatory power-buying flaws. A complication grants no permanent character power. When it materially makes a scene harder, the GM can award Heroic Inspiration, no more than once per session from this rule.

Duplicate Proficiencies

If ancestry, culture, or background grants a proficiency you already have at character creation, choose another proficiency of the same kind. A feature grants expertise only when it explicitly says so.